Walters, who was Bennett's deputy director at the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) during the elder President Bush's administration during the late 1980s, is a staunch conservative and hard-liner on drug issues. Salon quoted three anonymous sources as saying that Walters is the top candidate for the job, but the White House refused to comment on the report.

During Walters' stint at ONDCP, and under Bennett's leadership, drugs was portrayed as a moral, not health issue. Punishment, not rehabilitation, was emphasized. Walters also is quoted as saying that he favors stigmatizing people who use drugs.

Walters currently heads the conservative New Citizenship Project, which backs a larger role for religion in public life.

Observers worry that if Walters is appointed as drug czar, little progress will be made in balancing national drug control policy between supply reduction, which currently dominates federal funding, and demand reduction.

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